“I don’t trust myself.”
“Let go,” I murmured against his mouth. And before I had finished the words, he was kissing me like he never had before. I knew that it wasn’t just him I was kissing, but also the demon that lived deep inside. He had finally let me in, and I ardently kissed him back with all the love I had swelling in my heart for them both.
It was a package deal.
Even with my love for him racing through me and the taste his lips on mine, I couldn’t help but think he didn’t return the three words my heart desired.
Chapter 20
The high of being in love didn’t last long. Monday morning came and gave me a rude awakening in the form of none other than Emma.
Monday’s blow.
She was like a sliver under the skin that I couldn’t quite get rid of. Pesky and Persistent. High school was swiftly becoming a place I dreaded, and it was entirely her fault. This was my last year. It was supposed to be filled with wonderful memories, life-long friends, prom, and epic parties, not wondering what underhanded objective a too slighted hunter was devising. Not feeling scared I might not make it to my next class. Not having to always look over my shoulder.
She seemed to be able to find ways to corner me alone like some sixth sense. In the girl’s bathroom. At the main office. On the track field. It was maddening. She was everywhere.
Damned if she also wasn’t inventive. And determined. I’ll give her that. In the following weeks, I came to realize that for reasons I didn’t yet understand, Emma was targeting me. To make matters worse, I was positive that Chase had come to the same conclusion.
Today was one of those December days where I just wasn’t able to dodge Emma and her twisted games. She seemed to get off instilling the fear of God in me. If Emma hadn’t been a hunter, I was certain her and Sierra would have been besties. They were both mean as snot and had it in for me. Lately however, Sierra was actually…I wouldn’t say nice, that was going too far, but she’d been tolerable. I guess Emma had Sierra shaking in her 4-inch Dior boots.
My name whispered over my shoulder in the girl’s gym locker room. Coach Jenssen had sent me to retrieve a cart of soccer balls from the storage room. A simple errand, yet that was never in my case. Again my name breezed through the stuffy room smelling of sweaty socks and hairspray. I spun around.
Nothing.
Then I heard the unmistakable voice of Emma Deen. “Hiya demon lover.” Her breath was at the back of my neck and something pointy was jabbed into my side.
I froze.
Gosh, even in a mesh gym uniform she looked formidable. “Where are your bodyguards when you need them?”
I swallowed, afraid to breath. “If you are going to kill me, just do it already,” I said, managing to sound bored and a lot braver than I felt.
She chuckled. Emma had a sweet voice, but she had way of making it sound like vinegar. Bitter and Foul. “And make it easy for you? Where is the fun in that?”
For someone who was so scrawny, she packed the strength of a giant. “You tell me. I’m not the one with ideas of perverse fun.”
She stabbed the object further into my side, and I winced. Okay. Wrong answer. “Do you think your half-demon will still like you if I cut out your tongue?”
“He’d probably thank you.”
“Maybe you’re right.” There was enjoyment in her voice. She spun me around. Her emerald eyes shimmered with amusement and arrogance as we stood face-to-face. “It’s just a pen silly.” She held up a blue ink pen, twirling it in her fingers. “See you later.” Then she walked off.
I fumed.
My temper skyrocketed. I was going to beat her into a bloody pulp. I took a step forward, toward her retreating back with visions of her blood on my hands. How dare she threaten me with something as stupid as a pen.
“She giving you shit too?” Sierra asked, suddenly beside me, and I further shamed myself by jumping.
I couldn’t decide if I was more annoyed that she had stopped me from going Claude Van Damme on Emma’s ass, or if it was because it was her. “What are you doing here?” I shrieked. My heart couldn’t take all this excitement.
“Coach sent me to see what was taking so long. Don’t worry, I told her you had your monthly and probably had to change your tube.” Her grin was downright conniving.
“Wonderful,” I said sarcastically. Ugh, two in one day. It was more than I could handle. A person can only take so much. I could feel her smirking and I shrugged. “Emma’s threats are nothing new. They are starting to grow on me.”